Meet Terrance Watanabe, The Man Who Blew His Family's Entire $127 It was at this point that eyewitnesses came forward in Terrances defense and explained how casino employees would allow him to play three hands of blackjack in one go, which would sometimes result in a loss of millions in just a single night. In a civil suit filed in Clark County District Court last month, Mr. Watanabe, 52 years old, says casino staff routinely plied him with liquor and pain medication as part of a systematic plan to keep him gambling. No matter how small or large a writing project seems, I would always write it down with complete devotion. At present, the year long binge of gambling is seen as the biggest losing streak ever on the Las Vegas strip. Omaha entrepreneur Terrance Watanabe put other losers to shame by dropping $189 million in 2007 at Caesars Palace and Rio casinos in Vegas. Copyright 2023, All Right Reserved. He would sometimes stay up for 24 hours at a stretch placing bets on games with some of the worst odds in the house - roulette and $25 multi-line slot machines. Rather, though, he ended up losing a lot. Mr. Watanabe, who now lives in the Bay Area, stands near the entrance to Stanford University on Dec. 3, 2009. OConnor is also the widow of Robert Peterson, founder of Jack-in-the-Box restaurant. "There are a lot of things that make you cringe in Vegas -- but I've never seen anything like that.". In 2007, Terry took a trip to Las Vegas and spent an entire year gambling at different casinos, enjoying the gains and slowly wasting away his personal fortune. Watanabe received "tickets to the Rolling Stones, $12,500 a month for airfare and $500,000 in credit at the gift stores. In 2007, Terry Watanabe, a wealthy businessman from Omaha, Neb., lost more than $200 million gambling, mainly at Caesars Palace and the Rio. Over the next two years, he proceeded to lose it all again. Special vodka was imported from Russia for him and he would often gamble for 24 hours a day, playing three $50,000 hands of blackjack at a time, losing up to $5 million a day. His former lawyer, David Chesnoff, submitted a letter to a jury earlier this year, stating casino witnesses would testify that he was regularly drunk. Surely, he could have just hired a coach for a fraction of that! He has even set up a Go Fund Me to ask for help. He was allowed to play three blackjack hands simultaneously with a $50,000 limit for each hand. https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/gambler-dropped-127-million-vegas-blames-casino-losses/story?id=9272730 His game of choice was roulette which he spent playing for several hours before we lost every single chip he had in his possession. His antics earned him a personal bartender at both Caesars and the Rio, the Daily Mail reports, and he earned notoriety handing out stacks of hundred-dollar bills -- sometimes up to $20,000 -- to casino personnel as tips. The run is believed to be one of the biggest losing streaks by an individual in Las Vegas history. He went on rather famous gambling sprees, losing massive sums of cash. A hearing Friday . Hyperlinks will be created for URLs automatically. https://www.gofundme.com/terry-watanabe-my-story Several employees say Mr. Watanabe would stay at the tables for up to 24 hours, sometimes losing as much as $5 million in a single binge. He denies the charges, alleging that the casino reneged on promises to give him cash back on some. Now Terrance Watanabe faces criminal charges for nonpayment of the debts incurred during his gambling binges, London's Daily Mail newspaper reports. He started gambling at Harrahs Council Bluffs in Iowa, finally making his way to Las Vegas as a profound addiction set in. The arithmetic is astoun-ding. Last updated on: September 16, 2022, 03:04h. He stays away from gambling, but his health is destroyed. He could be sentenced to 28 years in prison if he fails to pay up. 12:01 GMT 08 Dec 2009. Terry Watanabe said he bet more than $825 million, losing $127 million in Caesars Palace and The Rio casinos in 2007. In fact, he was responsible for about 5.6% of the parent company Harrahs Entertainments Las Vegas gambling revenue that year. Instead, a private agreement was drafted two weeks prior to the court date where charges on both sides were dropped and no money was exchanged. But my hope is that you will find it in your heart to forgive me for my past and help me live long enough to help others in the future.. Watanabe moved into the Wynn Las Vegas. According to our Database, He has no children. Terrance Watanabe Owes 15 Million in Gambling Debts. He eventually plead guilty to embezzling over $65 million from his company and filed for bankruptcy in 2011. 'He made such bad decisions on the blackjack table,' said Kristian Kunder, one of Watanabe's personal handlers at Caesars Palace. We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on . Watanabe resigned as CEO and President in 2000 after giving his full investment in the Company to the Los Angeles-based private equity firm Brentwood Companies. Frank Saracakis was the heir of the Greek Automobile Company who took a trip to London in 1995 and decided to indulge in his pastime of gambling. All rights reserved. Foundation Media Partners Secures Rights To Story Of High Roller Terry Now very wealthy, he decided to devote the rest of his life to philanthropy. But he accepts his difficult situation with no self-pity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v+aq1IFpx07wc If there was a prize for the biggest gambling debts, Terrance Watanabe would be a clear winner. But in 1992, he was found brutally murdered in his home near Mount Fuji, stabbed over 150 times. Watanabe was unable to pay his gambling debts to the casino, even suing them for plying him with drugs and alcohol. His love for gambling, which is more accurately described as an obsession, was his downfall. His primary argument is that the casino allowed him to continue gambling while intoxicated, which is illegal. Terry has prostate cancer and requires a surgery that will cost $100,000. He responded to the lawsuit with the accusation that Caesars had promised to refund 30% of his losses but never made payment. Archie beat Stu in two consecutive games. The fortune he received from the sale of the company would be wasted on his uncontrollable gambling and drinking. Have a response on your own site? Many consider Watanabe the biggest loser in gambling history. He is not dating anyone. online casino news, guides, reviews and information since 1995. Business analysts compared it to the equivalent of a man with $3,000 losing $14, rumored that his first retirement was actually a secret suspension from the NBA, https://www.therichest.com/rich-list/the-biggest/5-of-the-biggest-gambling-losses-of-all-time/, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v+aq1IFpx07wc, https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/gambler-dropped-127-million-vegas-blames-casino-losses/story?id=9272730, https://www.gofundme.com/terry-watanabe-my-story, http://www.wowt.com/home/headlines/98043914.html, https://www.celebritynetworth.com/articles/entertainment-articles/meet-meth-kingpin-blew-125-million-gambling-vegas-casinos/, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-37699634, https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/questions-swirl-after-fraud-probe-targets-high-roller-who-lost-120-million/, https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2014/06/02/john-daly-relied-on-tax-records-to-figure-90-million-gambling-losses/#6f0711df6e09, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/1368368/Gambler-Packer-loses-13m-in-3-days.html, https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/heat-index/2015/01/16/charles-barkley-lost-nearly-30-million-gambling/21871513/, https://bleacherreport.com/articles/131997-mjs-1st-retirement-was-it-a-secret-suspension, https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/remembering-the-worlds-greatest-gambler-8722, https://www.nytimes.com/1992/01/12/us/a-top-gambler-is-killed-owing-casinos-millions.html, Interview: Renata Banyar, Betsoft Gamings CMO, Reveals Whats In Store For 2023, Luxors Sky Beam Attracts A Lot More Than Just Casino-goers, Top 10 Fun Things To Do With Kids In Vegas, Where To Find The Best Casino Buffets In Las Vegas, Haralabos Voulgaris: The Story Of A World-Class Bettor. terrance watanabe now medicolegal investigator salary After finishing her master's in publishing and writing, Melanie began her career as an online editor for a large gaming blog and has now transitioned over towards the iGaming industry. Then, in 2015, he was caught cheating at a San Diego-area casino, marking cards. Fern Watanabe, an astute busineswoman and loving mom, dies at 95 [7] Caesars Rewards created a special tier for him known as "Chairman" which ranks above "Seven Stars". All HTML will be escaped. He is currently single. The . https://www.nytimes.com/1992/01/12/us/a-top-gambler-is-killed-owing-casinos-millions.html. St Anthony Foundation is part of the Non-Profit & Charitable Organizations industry, and located in California, United States. Certainly, Saracakis isnt one of those gamblers who lost it all, but he certainly incurred one of the biggest losses and is a worthy addition to our list. Terrance Watanabe, 52, is believed to have the biggest losing streak in Las Vegas history, losing $127 million dollars in one year. Who is archie karas? Explained by Sharing Culture Watanabe's colossal losses soon became the stuff of legend - not to mention a tourist attraction. Watanabe made his fortune building up his fathers modest trade business, Oriental Trading Co., into a company with revenues of $300 million a year. In 2007, the year of his jaw-dropping losing streak, Watanabe was bingeing at the tables for up to 24 hours, sometimes losing as much as $5 million in a single session. A perennial all-star and member of the Dream Team, Charles Barkley was a famous basketball player who has continued to work as a TV analyst. document.write('